Program for Development and Peace in the Middle Magdalena Region, PDPMM The Program for Development and Peace in the Middle Magdalena Region, PDPMM, has its origins in a study of the spreading violence and poverty in the region sponsored by Ecopetrol and conducted by the National University in 1988, and later on by ESAP and CINEP in 1995. The PDPMM was created in 1998 through an agreement between CINEP and the diocese of Barrancabermeja, and on suggestion from the National Planning Department, to manage resources invested in the region. Its headquarters are in Barrancabermeja. The Program does not carry out projects. Its concern is lending support to the people of the region to put their initiatives into practice, assisting them in the removal of obstacles, the raising of funds and the provision of human resources. The Program currently handles 59 initiatives of various community organizations of the region. They fall into four categories: Productivity, the Environment, Coexistence, and Peace and Education. The Program stimulates the development of social capital and the defense of human dignity through the promotion of respect for human rights. It gives priority to human development, placing emphasis on prosperity and social and community development. In recognition of its efforts, the French government honored the Program for Development and Peace in the Middle Magdalena Region with the 2000 Human Rights Prize, awarded to its director, Father Francisco De Roux.